Texas-born Josh Brown started playing guitar in the midst of the 1990s grunge era. Today, he's a Murray, Kentucky bluegrass and folk singer-songwriter. Brown will perform on the next installment of Sounds Good's Live Lunch series next Friday.
Josh Brown was born in Dallas, Texas in 1981 to Bob and Patsy Brown. In the early 1990s, he was heavily influenced by the grunge scene, notably bands like Nirvana. "The way I looked at it was, [Kurt Cobain] writes catchy, four-chord songs, and I thought I could do that," Brown explains. He picked up the guitar in 1993 and continued to play throughout high school.
At eighteen, Brown made the 600-mile trek to Murray, Kentucky. Once in Kentucky, his style shifted from grunge rock to bluegrass and folk. Brown attributes this change to the "hippies and good old boys" he befriended, whose own playing styles and musical interests influenced him to trade his electric guitar for an acoustic. "My main influence for playing acoustic guitar about ten years ago was a guy named Keller Williams. I studied his style pretty religiously," Brown explains. "Now I play old country, folk, and bluegrass music. Funny how getting older makes you appreciate older music and just dropping the tempo down in general."
Brown is often joined by Shaun Brown on guitar under the name The Hashbrowns. Brown says, "[Shaun] is my partner-in-crime laying down the sweet licks that really make my songs come alive." Shaun Brown will be playing lead guitar during the Live Lunch performance.
Josh Brown performs on the next Live Lunch on Friday, June 7th. Join Tracy Ross for this original, live performance on-air, on the WKMS Facebook page, or on the WKMS website. Live Lunch is made possible by Murray State Digital Media Services, Just Hamburgers in Paducah, KY, and listeners like you.
For more information on Josh Brown's music and upcoming performances, visit his Facebook page.